Syrians demonstrate to denounce Arab League's decision

Thousands of supporters loyal to President Bashar al-Assad demonstrated late Saturday in the capital Damascus and other regions across Syria to condemn the Arab League's decision to suspend Syria's membership after it failed to stop the bloodbath in the country, dpa reported.

Residents living in Damascus told dpa by phone that women, children and elderly gathered in the main square in the city center and chanted slogans against the Arab League and the member states who backed the decision against Syria.

The crowd expressed anger against Qatar, which currently heads an Arab League committee on the Syrian crisis. "Qatar you are a puppet in the hands of the Americans," chanted the angry crowd near the Qatari embassy in Damascus.

Syrian television broadcast live pictures of similar protests in the coastal city of Latakia and in Aleppo.